Published 8:57 am, Tuesday, August 26, 2014

Monday night's Emmy Awards In Memoriam segment started with a live rendition of "Smile," performed by Sara Bareilles.

While Peter O'Toole, Lauren Bacall, James Garner, Maya Angelou, and many others were all honored, the segment ended with Robin Williams, who died earlier this month.

Williams' longtime friend Billy Crystal eulogized the late actor, saying: "He made us laugh hard, every time you saw him... I spent many hours on stage with Robin and the brilliance was astounding. His relentless energy was thrilling. I used to think if I could just put a saddle on him and stay on for eight seconds I would do okay."

Crystal then told a funny story about going to a baseball game with Williams:

Robin, Whoopi, and I were once in Shea Stadium, in the broadcast booth with the great Tim McCarver. It was comic-relief day for the New York Mets. Robin knew nothing about baseball. I asked him, "What's your favorite team?" And he said, 'The San Franciscoes.' So he was a little lost in the conversation, so I got an idea and I said, "You know, Tim, we have a great Russian baseball player with us." I looked over, his eyes got all bright, his ears perked up like he was a little dog that was inside all day and the master came and said, "Hey, you want to go for a walk?" So I said, "What's baseball like in Russia?" Without missing a beat, he said, "Well, we've only got one team: the Reds." Well, the next pitch, the batter fouled one off and it came screaming back at us, we ducked down, it slammed against the wall. Robin turned around and bounced it into his hands, and then he stood up and screamed, "I love America. I'm going to defect."

"He could be funny anywhere," Crystal continued. "We were such great friends that he would come to all of our family functions, weddings, Bar Mitzvahs... and he would sit with my older, immigrant relatives like he was just one of the guys. And he would tell them about his journey from his little shtetl in Poland to America. One uncle of mine said, 'I came to America after World War II and I hitchhiked.' Robin responded, 'I waited until there was a 747 and a Kosher meal.'"

"As genius as he was on stage, he was the best friend you could ever imagine: supportive, protective, loving," added Crystal, getting emotional. "It's very hard to talk about him in the past because he was so present in all of our lives."

"For almost 40 years, he was the brightest star in the comedy galaxy," said Crystal. "But while some of the brightest of our celestial bodies are actually extinct now, their energy long since cooled, but miraculously, because they float in the heavens so far away from us now, their beautiful light will continue to shine on us forever. And the glow will be so bright, it'll warm your heart, it'll make your eyes glisten, and it'll make you think to yourselves: Robin Williams, what a concept."